Dynamic Metal Price Calculator

FAQ

How does the pricing calculation work?

The pricing engine computes the product price deterministically:
1. Resolves base metal rate (e.g. Gold Rate * Purity % / 100).
2. Multiplies rate by item weight in grams.
3. Adds fixed base price (e.g. stones, diamonds, packaging).
4. Adds percentage making/labour charge.
5. Adds percentage wastage allowance.
6. Adds percentage retail markup.
7. Adds percentage GST / sales tax.
8. Adds flat shipping fees.
9. Applies authoritative price rounding (Nearest 10, 50, 100, or Custom increment).

What is the difference between Active and Show in Dropdown?

• Active (On/Off): Master switch. Inactive metals cannot be used in calculations for new items.
• Show in Dropdown (On/Off): Visibility switch. Turning this OFF hides the metal from new product selectors while allowing existing products using this metal to continue calculating prices accurately.

How do I restrict available metals for a specific product?

On the product edit screen, use the Allowed Metals for this Product checklist. Leaving all unchecked allows all globally active metals. Checking one or more metals restricts that product and its variations to only the checked options.

How does Price Rounding work?

Price rounding is applied once to the final calculated price using standard half-up arithmetic:
* None: Exact calculated price.
* Nearest 10: e.g. 2,254 -> 2,250; 2,256 -> 2,260.
* Nearest 50: e.g. 2,201 -> 2,200; 2,249 -> 2,250; 2,276 -> 2,300.
* Nearest 100: e.g. 2,249 -> 2,200; 2,250 -> 2,300.
* Custom Increment: Any numeric increment (e.g. 25, 5, or 0.50).
Rounding is authoritative and carries through into the cart, checkout, payment gateway, and placed orders.

How do I configure Variable Products?

1. In a Variable Product, go to the Variations tab and expand a variation.
2. Check the box: “Use Dynamic Metal Price Calculator for this variation”.
3. Select the metal type and enter the variation’s weight in grams.
4. Leave charge fields blank to inherit parent product or global defaults.
5. Save variations.

Can I use custom formulas or fixed rates?

Yes. In the Metals & Purities Manager, choose the Custom group:
* Enter a mathematical formula referencing variables gold_rate or silver_rate with +, -, *, /, (, ) (e.g. gold_rate * 1.25).
* Or simply enter a fixed rate (e.g. 500) without any formula.
All formulas are parsed using a safe Reverse Polish Notation (RPN) stack with zero arbitrary code execution.

What if a metal option does not appear in the product dropdown?

1. Verify that the metal is Active and Show in Dropdown is enabled in the Metals & Purities Manager.
2. Check if the product has an Allowed Metals whitelist that excludes this metal.
3. Save settings and refresh the product editor page.

Does this plugin fetch live rates from an external API?

No. Store owners enter manual daily rates in Metal Prices -> Metal Rates. This gives merchants absolute control over pricing without relying on third-party API keys or rate limits.

Can I hide certain charge details from shoppers on the product page?

Yes. In Metal Prices -> Frontend Display Controls, toggle individual components on or off. Hidden components remain active in the background calculation.

Does this plugin send data outside my server?

No. Dynamic Metal Price Calculator is 100% self-contained. It makes zero external HTTP requests, contains zero tracking, and does not collect or transmit store or customer data.

Is the plugin compatible with High-Performance Order Storage (HPOS)?

Yes. The plugin declares official compatibility with WooCommerce HPOS (custom_order_tables) and WooCommerce Cart & Checkout Blocks.